Page 151 of The Finish Line
“We’ve already eliminated his plan B, and if there’s a C, we’ll figure it out and handle it, but Palo hasn’t left his side in weeks, and I doubt there is one.” Sean looks to Tobias. “We’re giving Palo a set of keys, but he’s agreed to get wings and wing his men, so it’s ours to share.”
Tobias only nods, seeming introspective as Sean speaks up again. “We’ll have a lot to work out down the line, and we will, but since we’re now covered by the government, why don’t you both take a little trip while I clean this mess up?”
Tobias turns to me with zero objection, and I can still see he’s trying to work it all out. “Any ideas?” He narrows his eyes when I upturn my lips. “I’ve got just the place in mind.”
Chapter Forty-Two
Tobias
Tossing the last of our suitcases in the idling Audi, I eye Cecelia, who’s talking to Ryan on a burner phone while taking Beau for a walk before we head out on the road.
Fucking Ryan. Her source on all things Greg. She caught onto him before I even landed in Virginia.
I’m still so fucking blown away by what just transpired—shocked mostly, along with a thousand other emotions I’m having to constantly battle to keep my shit together. What she’s done, what she managed to do while under my careful watch, is incomprehensible to me. And even though I’m filled with pride, I’m still fucking battling the urge to spank her or fuck her, or both. Definitely at the same time. Problem is, she likes the punishment too much.
But mostly, I’m just in awe of her, of her strength, her ability, and the woman she’s become—fierce, brave, brilliant, powerful, and fearless.
I can’t help the dopey smile on my face as I watch her scold her dog briefly like it’s an everyday walk as she chats on the phone like she didn’t just save both our fucking lives, and ensure our future while lifting a thousand-pound burden from my shoulders and preventing a war.
I’ve just been schooled by my queen.
Un-fucking-believable.
And she played me on an expert level.
Sean joins me where I stand at the trunk, my eyes fixed on the woman who retrieved my heart, healed my soul, and saved my life a thousand times over.
I can feel Sean’s watchful gaze on me before he speaks up. “All set.”
I nod. “Let me get her in the car.”
An uncomfortable silence passes between us as I try to work my brain around the fact that Sean’s here and the why of it. That he, himself, went through great lengths to prove a similar point to me.
“It’s going to take you weeks to piece it together,” he says, reading my thoughts.
I cross my arms. “I think she’ll gloat way too much to give me a chance to work it all out for myself.”
“I say she’s earned the right.” He turns in her direction, and she glances back at the two of us, her eyes darting nervously between us as Sean speaks up again.
“Think there will ever come a time when things aren’t so fucking weird between the three of us?”
“I don’t know,” I say honestly.
“Or that you don’t feel ill at ease when I look at her?”
I stare at his profile as he crosses his arms and leans against the trunk, his gaze still on Cecelia.
“I’m in love with my wife, Tobias.” He turns to me, his expression genuine. “I’m convinced by my own experience that it’s possible to love more than once in a lifetime. And honestly, I never thought I would see her again after she left Triple.”
“Neither did I.”
“What made you go after her, finally?”
“Because maybe you are capable, but I’m not. There’s no one else for me but her. Never before, never after.”
“I get that.” Another bout of silence. “She’s more than ready.”
“She is, but I’m leaving the when up to her. I don’t know how long it’s going to be until then, and I really don’t give a fuck. It’s her call, indefinitely.”